Evaluation Matrix – Pinterest

Name of teaching resource:

Weblink:

Who should this digital teaching resource be used with?

This resource is suitable for teachers to use as a guide for content, which could be included in their lesson planning within a year 1 maths class.

How should it be used?

Teachers could use the information and products available through the Pinterest board to collaborate information and use to design lesson plans and content for their students. The ideas and products available could be used for both individual student work, or in groups or as a class.

For example, included in the Pinterest board are links to You Tube sites which have video clips of songs to help children learn how to count from 1-100 as well as skip counting by 2’s 5’s and 10’s. These videos would be a great additional learning tool for use with the whole class as all students could learn the words to the songs and sing along.

For small groups and individual work the use of ‘Hundreds Charts’ or the online educational maths games could be used (all links provided on the Pinterest board).

Which subject or learning area would it be most appropriate to use in?

This resource has been designed for Year 1 Maths, in particular Number and Algebra and it covers the following topic areas:

Develop confidence with number sequences to and from 100 by ones from any starting point. Skip count by twos, fives and tens starting from zero. (ACMNA012)

Recognise, model, read, write and order numbers to at least 100. Locate these numbers on a number line (ACMNA013)

Count collections to 100 by partitioning numbers using place value (ACMNA013)

Represent and solve simple addition and subtraction problems using a range of strategies including counting on, partitioning and rearranging parts (ACMNA015)

Identify the strengths of this teaching resource:

This resource is easy to create and can have additional teaching resources and ideas added to it at any time, anywhere from any digital device. Other teachers and educators can also view the resource so that the knowledge and information can be shared. Another benefit is that the creator of the Pinterest board can invite additional people, such as other educators, to join their Pinterest board so that they can add and elaborate on the collection to enable a broader variety of teaching material and ideas.

Identify any weaknesses of this teaching resource:

While some of the links included in this resource take you to sites which offer you access to the teaching materials and videos for free, there are others that only provide you with an example and should you wish to use their products you must purchase them. If you were unable to purchase them you could use their ideas to create your own teaching materials however this could be time consuming depending on the task.

Another issue faced is that some of the free teaching aids are provided on websites, which require you to become members and log into their site before continuing.

Explain any ideas you may have for further use of this teaching resource:

I could see Pinterest being a valuable teaching resource for educators. As an educator you could develop a separate Pinterest board for each subject area and topic that you teach. You can then refer back to your Pinterest boards for ideas and inspiration when creating lesson plans.

Pinterest could also be a useful tool for students. With the younger students, such as those in Year 1, the teacher could do the research on the specific topic and pin relevant websites and articles to a Pinterest board. Then, depending on the availability of computers, students could work individually or in small groups to explore the information provided within the Pinterest Board. With the teachers guidance this will provide the students an independent way to explore and learn about the particular topic.

Evaluation Matrix – Wordle

Name of teaching resource:

Wordle – Based on the Children’s Story – The Wonky Donkey by Craig Smith

Who should this digital teaching resource be used with?

This resource would be suitable for Year 1 students and can be used as a whole class, small group or individual resource. It would be a good tool to challenge and engage students of all reading levels. This Wordle is based on the picture storybook ‘The Wonky Donkey’ by Craig Smith.

How should it be used?

This resource would be used in conjunction with a lesson on Prediction and Reading Texts.

For example the teacher would first explain with the class what prediction is and how we can use it to help us understand what we are reading. Then as an exercise advise students that they will use a Wordle to see if they can predict what the story is about, this can be done in small groups or individually. The Wordle should be made from a story or an article; in this example it is based on a children’s picture book ‘The Wonky Donkey’. The teacher should also explain to the students that in a Wordle, the larger the words the more frequent they appear in the text.

Students should be allowed a set amount of time, such as 20-30mins, to examine and discuss the Wordle. Then returning as a class group, everyone should share and record their ideas on what they thought the Wordle was about. Afterwards the teacher would show and read to them the actual story or article. Further activities could be to then discuss and compare, as a class or in small groups, what their original predictions were about the text and how they relate to the actual story.

Which subject or learning area would it be most appropriate to use in?

This resource has been designed for Year 1 English. It covers the following topics required under the Australian Curriculum:

Identify the strengths of this teaching resource:

Wordles are visually engaging and can be used and would be beneficial with children of all reading levels. For lower level readers it can provide them with an opportunity to read and comprehend words one at a time so that when they read the full text they are able to read it more fluently.

This resource can also be used with any story or article, and can be quick and easily produced if the text is web based as it can easily be copied and pasted into the Wordle program.

Identify any weaknesses of this teaching resource:

Could be time consuming typing out all of the text if you are unable to find an online version that you can copy and paste into the program.

As part of the Wordles program you are able to select your own font and colour schemes. When doing this care must be taken to ensure the font is easily legible for the students and that any colour schemes chosen do not affect students who are colour blind. I have created a black and white Wordle for this reason and so that it can be easily printed and photocopied for class handouts.

Explain any ideas you may have for further use of this teaching resource:

Another way a Wordle could be used within a Year 1 class would be to have the students reflect on a particular reading or event. For example they could write about what they learnt, what happened, or what their favourite part was. The teacher or students could then input all of their reflections into a Wordle and as a class they could discuss what were the most popular ideas and elements of the event or story. This would be covered under the Australian Curriculum for Comprehension Strategies (ACELY1660) – Use comprehension strategies to build literal and inferred meaning about key events, ideas and information in texts that they listen to, view and read by drawing on growing knowledge of content, text structures and language features.

Learning in the 21st Century has moved from traditional teaching methods to more technologically driven. Providing students with digital fluency is essential for life long learning. It enables them to be better engaged and participate in society; it will also assist them in the future to secure employment (White, 2013, p.7.). But what exactly is digital fluency, and as educators how can we ensure that we are providing students with the necessary tools to become digitally fluent?

A digitally fluent student is one that can swiftly, accurately and purposely, create, communicate and collaborate across platforms with ease (Holland, 2013). In her book Teaching with ICT, Howell (2012, p.133) describes a Grade 4 student as being a ‘technology neophyte’, which is someone who has a good understanding of the basics of technology and who is ready for more progressive learning. It is expected that by the end of primary school or early secondary school students will become digitally fluent learners. Howell (2013, p.149) also states that in order to ensure students become digital fluent, educators need to incorporate digital technologies and programs into their classrooms and assessments. While there are endless possibilities to utilise a variety of digital resources or programs, it is important that foundational programs such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint are introduced into their learning. These programs will provide the students with skills and experiences that will assist them in life outside of school and in the workforce.

As a pre service teacher in Early Education I need to ensure that I construct my lessons in such a way that will enable the students to become digitally fluent. Three strategies which I could implement in the classroom to help establish digital fluency would be to provide more student led classes which will enable students to source their own content knowledge; Equip students with only partial instructions so that they become competent problem solvers; and lastly, encourage students to become forward learners and empower them to share their solutions with others (Holland, 2013).

Digital Convergence streamlines the way in which we incorporate digital technologies in our every day lives. We are no longer living in an era where digital technologies work independently. Digital technologies have the ability to work together in unison on a single device to save us time and simplify life (CCM. 2016).

When is comes to education the rise of digital convergence brings with it both opportunities and challenges to educators. The main force behind digital convergence is the Internet. This technology provides access to an extensive range of devices and programs and the ability to integrate them simultaneously on multiple devices, such as computers, smart phones, tablets and electronic whiteboards (Core Education. n.d.). Within a classroom setting the use of ICT (Information and Communications Technology) is enhanced by digital convergence. It increases the possibilities for interaction and collaboration between teachers and students (Serrano-Santoyo and Cabrera-Flores, 2014, p.30).

Miami Dade County Public School is one such school that has come forward to show the positive effects that digital convergence has had on their school and their student’s education. Through the integration of digital technologies within their classrooms, teachers found that students were more collaborative and their engagement and motivation in classroom activities and learning increased. They also found that like Howell, J. (2012), digital pedagogy within their school is becoming more co-collaborated and a more student led discovery based learning environment.

I believe that digital convergence is the way of the future within schools and digitally integrated programs, like the ones at Miami Dade County Public school, and other programs such as Google Apps for Education help to provide better communication and collaboration amongst teachers and student. Ultimately, digital convergence provides us with opportunities to engage with others and with our surroundings in ways that have not previously been thought of.

We are living in a digital world where computers and technology are at the forefront of our every day lives. This digital world is rapidly changing people and workplaces are increasingly reliant on computers and technology. Due to this, jobs are now requiring a more diverse range of knowledge, skills and attitudes (Pillay, 2004). In order to keep up to date with changing technologies educators are now required to adopt a digital pedagogy (Howell, 2012, p. 5).

In order to appreciate how far technology has come within classrooms, I found it interesting to take a look back in the past. Technology has come so far in less than 100 years. The radio was the first piece of technology introduced into the classrooms back in the 1920s. Overhead projectors were introduced in the 1930s then photocopiers in 1959 (The Evolution of Technology in the Classroom, 2016). The majority of student based work during that time was handwritten on slate, paper or in books. Fast-forward to 2016 and times have changed dramatically. Students are now heavily reliant on computers and tablets to complete their written work or assignments (Rivera, 2015).

However, having access to all this technology in classrooms does not mean that students will be better equipped for life in the digital world. Paul from Pear Tree Education states this in his You Tube Video ‘How to use technology in education’ by stating; “Technology is not the solution to 21st Century Education. Technology is simply a tool to aid education and learning” (2013). As a student studying early childhood education, I need to be aware of the changing digital technologies in our world and ensure that I incorporate digital technologies into my pedagogical practices so that my students will be better equipped for this digital world.

ABOUT ME

Hi! My name's Nicolette and I'm a pre-service teacher at Curtin University studying a Batchelor of Early Childhood Education. This Blog forms part of my 2nd Assessment for 'Teaching in a Digital World' - EDC101. I hope you enjoy looking through my blog and reading my work!